TLN Teacher Voices

Exploratopia: Fabulous Weird Science

The Exploratorium, founded by noted physicist and educator Dr. Frank Oppenheimer in 1969, is an internationally renowned, interactive museum that sees more than 600,000 visitors every year. It was the first museum to encourage visitors to experiment for themselves, and it houses more than 650 hands-on exhibits within San Francisco's historic Palace of Fine Arts.

We recently came across a copy of the museum’s 2006 book Exploratopia (Little, Brown), with its intriguing subtitle: More than 400 kid-friendly experiments and explorations for curious minds. We asked TLN Forum member Laura Reasoner Jones, whose idea of a good time is to sponsor mad-girl scientist clubs after school, to read and review it.

I started and run the GEMS club (Girls Excelling in Math and Science) in my school district. And, I have to admit, I am something of a nerd. So when the opportunity came to review a hands-on science/math book by the San Francisco discovery-it-yourself museum, the Exploratorium, I truly jumped at the chance.

Weird science is my thing. And they did not disappoint.

This book is fabulous. So many of these science books for kids are a rehash of the same old things -- the standard science experiments, with a sidebar warning to use extreme caution. This book is much, much better.

First of all, it is arranged in a logical way, from inside to outside – from learning about yourself to learning about the outside world. That is how most kids see life, and it makes for just plain interesting reading even if you never try any of the experiments.

Exploratopia starts with learning about cool things your body does. Here are some of my personal favorites and some of the things I may try with my club:

• One-eyed basketball (p. 13) — Can’t you just see a gym full of girls playing basketball with patches over one eye? Arrgh.

• The super-taster (p. 41) — Figuring out who can taste things the best. Kids leave the activity with blue or green tongues!

Next, the book moves on to exploring cool places — the kitchen, the bathroom, the playground, and then to the amusement park and the beach. My personal favorites here:

• Dissolving egg shells with vinegar (p. 86) — have you noticed I go for the gross and dangerous?
• Mummifying hot dogs (p. 97) — enough said.
• Getting DNA from your own spit (p. 99) — more than enough said.
• Making super-strength water balloons (p. 138) — girls need to learn this stuff too!
• Rocket-launching (p. 144) — definitely something we are going to do this year.
• Making your own roller coaster (p. 156) — the best of the best.

I think the reason I like the book editors’ choices so much is that they've included just enough of the science to make it interesting, but not enough that it becomes deadly (like most textbooks).

Further along, the book ventures out into the world to look at “Interesting Stuff.” This is kind of a mish-mash of things, but again, they do it very well. Actually, it looks like an editorial committee’s compilation of favorite activities, but hey -- who wouldn’t want to know the favorite science experiments of the people who run the Exploratorium?

My personal favorites here, and definitely worth trying:

• The whole section on codes (p. 195)
• How to make up new words that work (p. 203)
• A huge section of math games, especially Math Magic (p. 233)
• Making rings and bridges out of dollar bills (p. 246)
• Making lenses out of Jell-O—very cool (p. 298)

This book is worth every penny, both for classroom teachers, and for families and individual kids. I am thrilled to have it for my GEMS library and will use it over and over. I think it ranks right up there with the Klutz book The Encyclopedia of Immaturity, which has great ideas but can’t be cited for my GEMS projects (for pretty obvious reasons). Believe me, comparing Exploratopia to this Klutz classic is high praise indeed.

If you like mad science, or want to turn kids on to science and math, Exploratopia needs to be right up there on the top shelf of your “Engaging STEM Books” collection.

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The hardcover edition of Exploratopia is still widely available from the usual book sources for under $30. You can sample some of the activities here.

Laura Reasoner Jones is a National Board Certified Teacher and an elementary technology specialist in Northern Virginia. She's also the author of an article, “The Ick Factor: Do Gender or Ethnicity Drive STEM Choices?”, in the Summer 2008 issue of Threshold magazine.

Six-Word Inaugural Addresses

When SMITH Magazine and the National Constitution Center invited Americans to write six-word inauguration addresses (or, more accurately, "six words to inspire a nation"), we were reminded that in six words a President can say a lot. In his 1961 inaugural address, for example, John F. Kennedy told the world that America would "pay any price, bear any burden" to assure the success of liberty.

The winning phrase in this year's SMITH-NCC contest was submitted by Donna Formica-Wilsey of Philadelphia, PA, who wrote: "Divided by fear, united in hope."

Several participants in our Teacher Leaders Network Forum also accepted the SMITH challenge. Here are some of our six-word samplers, aimed not only at inspiring all of us but reminding us of pledges past.

 Renee:

...with liberty and justice for all.

Nancy:

I vote for Renee's submission. But this is mine:

Restoring hope, Rebuilding community, Regenerating imagination.

Karen:

Since it might just take a Superman in this office right now, in light of the economy and the current political scandals, how about:

Truth, Justice, and the American Way

Anne:

Six words?  Guess I'd hit the high points . . .

Education, Economy, Environment, Health Care, Peace

Marjorie:

Taking  a cue from Renee....

By the People, For the People

Cossondra:

Dare to dream a better future

Bill from MA:

Respect, rights, responsibilities. United in diversity.

Gail:

I Have a Dream's come true

John:

Quoting another John (Dewey)

But the revolution is still incomplete.

2009 Teacher Leader Resolutions

Despite Oscar Wilde's admonition that "Good resolutions are simply checks that men draw on a bank where they have no account," educators in the Teacher Leaders Network Forum willingly collaborated this week in a group writing activity -- offering resolutions they hope might inspire the nation’s teacher leaders in 2009.

A selection of their resolutions appears in our TLN contribution to Teacher Magazine this week. We had many more wise observations than we could fit into the TM space. So here’s more good advice offered by colleagues who teach in schools from Massachusetts to Michigan, from the Carolinas to California.

• I will encourage and support other teachers to become leaders outside of their classrooms, and show them ways in which they can. There are many opportunities out there for a teacher. Sometimes it just takes someone to show them where to start.

• Be a positive role model in all that you do. Lead by creating an atmosphere of hope and possibility in every situation. Always assume good intentions, especially when it seems the opposite is true. When you strive to maintain this disposition, those around you cannot help but want to follow your lead.

• Actions speak louder than words; lead by what you do, not what you say. Teacher leaders are not the ones that are the most vocal, active, or have a special title. They are respected because they speak up when they need to, but stay quiet and listen to others as well.

• I know I can learn as much from others as they can learn from me. I will not just complain about the way things are, but be willing to work with others to change them for the better. I will not expect others to do things that I wouldn't do myself, and above all, remember that in the end we are all here for the students.

• Teacher leaders need to look at our learning processes and see where they can be streamlined. One of my resolutions is to bring the Japanese notion of kaizen, or continuous improvement, into school meetings. Governments around the country are seeing success with this way of thinking that diagrams a job step-by-step, and gives workers the freedom to think of more efficient ways to do their jobs. Kaizen encourages people to ask “why” five times. Why not ask “why” more often as we sit in our meetings? I plan to.

• Take a risk. This could mean stepping out of one's comfort zone with regards to instruction, attempting new leadership roles, or affecting change in policy either locally or beyond.

• Tackle something that's difficult. The greatest amount of growth comes from discomfort. For authentic learning to occur, our children must struggle to gain their own knowledge. In the same way, we teachers must labor over tasks from time to time. Nothing is "sweeter" than the satisfaction of mastering a difficult assignment.

• Remember, quality over quantity. Depth over breadth is a concept we advocate when developing curriculum. It also applies to our jobs as educators.

• Keep the passion. Passion is a powerful force; it's the driving energy behind the scenes which supports teachers as they work through the day, and into the evening, doing what few have the opportunity to do -- positively influence the children within our reach.

• My resolution is to be there for students and other teachers. What can I do? What do you know? How can I help you? What resources can I find for you? Let's go for the goal!

• Bringing new leaders into the leadership fold is key to building our profession. And I'm not talking about giving leadership opportunities to those who have been smog-inducers just to cajole them into basic buy-in. I'm talking about recognizing abilities in that teacher in the corner who has taught quietly and passionately behind closed doors for years. Or the newer teachers without tenure who aren't sure how to stand up without getting knocked down.

• I will take time each week to do something that is just for me.  I will make no excuses on why I cannot find time to do this because it is important to take care of me. (I know this one will be a lot harder than, say, giving up chili cheese fries!)

• I will not say yes to everything asked of me, but rather be more selective in what I choose to commit to. I want to be an effective teacher leader, not an exhausted superhero (which I know I try to be).  If we do everything we want to or are asked to, we would not last long or have the energy to give anything our full attention.

• I will remember to celebrate small accomplishments. Rather than only focusing on getting to the end goal, I will also recognize the steps along the way.

• For new and old teachers alike: every day, find ways to make this difficult job a happy one for yourself. Unhappy teachers abound in this profession. You can't walk the halls without passing one. The true teacher leaders are those who have learned how to remain positive and effective. Skip frustrated. Go directly to contentment.

We'd love to hear your teacher leadership resolutions for the New Year!